Sunday's Game Making More Than Just Me NERVOUS

I've already talked about this weekend's match with The Carolina Panthers and how uneasy it is making me! The angst is gaining ground as the week flies by.

I am going to be on site for the tussel. I will be sitting with another Packer fan and an expatriate Panther fan. Now I find an article in Madison's Wisconsin Journal by sports writer Tom Oates and it seems I am not alone.

Oates says:

"Quarterback Brett Favre has expressed surprise that the Green Bay Packers haven't laid an egg this season.

The real surprise, however, will be if the Packers don't lay an egg Sunday against the Carolina Panthers at Lambeau Field.

Think about it.

The Packers are the least likely 8-1 team on the planet, they are coming off of their most complete game of the season, they are favored for only the ninth time in coach Mike McCarthy's 26 games and they are playing a 4-5 team one week after routing arch-rival Minnesota and heading into back-to-back Thursday showdowns at Detroit and Dallas, NFC contenders with a combined 14-4 record.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is a working definition of a trap game in the NFL."

Holy crap! The man has read my mind!

Oates goes on to say:

"There hasn't been much need for managing euphoria in recent years in Green Bay, but the 34-0 victory over the Vikings and the running game that accompanied it made believers of many who had remained unconvinced while the Packers eked out victory after close victory.

Suddenly, McCarthy has to be concerned that the inclination to look ahead will take over the locker room, especially since he coaches the NFL's youngest team.

The threat is real, too.

If the Packers fixate on their Thanksgiving Day game at NFC North rival Detroit, Carolina — despite a debilitating quarterback situation — is certainly strong enough to burst their ever-enlarging bubble."

So Coach Mike McCarthy faces the monumental task of keeping these very young men focused on the HERE and NOW. Only time will tell if he can do it.

Sure, he has the veteran at quarterback -- but so do the Panthers. And don't forget that John Fox is very familiar with Coach McCarthy's style and preparation having faced him many times when McCarthy was offensive coordinator with The New Orleans Saints.

I hate it that the Packers are favored by 9 1/2 points! Shut up! Underdogs. We wanna be underdogs!

Oates concludes:

"Despite McCarthy's frequent reminders about handling success — it was his initial topic the first time he met with the team in 2006 — the Packers look like a perfect petri dish in which to grow a culture of complacency.

"We're not going to jump ahead," Favre said. "Carolina's obviously a tough opponent. Every game we've played has been extremely close — it's come down to a play or two here or there — except for last week. I don't assume that will change. From here on out, we have to play our best football and we have to approach every game that way."

One thing the Packers have going for them is that they haven't forgotten how they got here.

"We've been behind, we've been in battles in the fourth quarter, we've been in games that didn't look like they were going to come out our way and we've battled it out and scratched and clawed our way to victories," Barnett said. "I think that's a great indication of the type of people we have in this locker room and the character we've built."

Maybe so, but the real reason the Packers won't lay an egg is because they're still listening to McCarthy, and he won't let them. "

So Coach McCarthy and our Packers must strike the delicate balance on Sunday. We must not go into the game flat because of over confidence nor must we go into the game so tight that we cannot execute.

Look to our captain in the first quarter. As Brett goes, so goes the team. And say a little prayer nightly that Ryan Grant has another solid game on the ground.

This really is the week that the Packers need to establish themselves for real! May the ghost of Vince Lombardi be present, exhorting the boys to indeed leave it all on the field.